


Dress

by winterwaters



Category: A Song of Ice and Fire - George R. R. Martin, Game of Thrones (TV)
Genre: F/M, Fluff, lots and lots of fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-07-20
Updated: 2013-07-20
Packaged: 2017-12-20 18:30:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,401
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/890461
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/winterwaters/pseuds/winterwaters
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Gendry could count on one hand the number of times he’d seen Arya in a dress.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Dress

She’d been sitting on the curb in a dirtied green garment when he first met her, heading home from the grocery store. He’d been so startled and worried and curious that he’d sat next to her immediately, not giving his grocery bags another thought.

Her gaze was defiant and stubborn beyond her years as he settled onto the pavement.

“Do you need help?”

“No,” she muttered, picking at the patterned fabric.

He looked around. “Where’s your family?”

She jerked her head to the house behind her. “Out back with the guests.”

“Not interested in joining them?”

“Are you kidding? My mum will have a fit when she sees this.” She sighed. “Serves her right for making me wear it.”

“You look nice,” he said, or rather tried to say, because she glared at him so suddenly that the words cut off. For such a tiny person, she was rather intimidating when she wanted to be.

So he gestured to the dress, “How’d all this happen anyways?”

She shrugged. “I was having fun,” she said, and he grinned.

“I can tell. I’m Gendry, by the way.” He stuck out his hand, and after a moment of eyeing him shrewdly, she shook it.

“Arya.”

“Nice to meet you, officially,” he said, and she rolled her eyes.

“You go to Elm’s Grove, right?” She asked. At his surprised look, she added, “I’ve seen you with my brother a few times when Mum came to pick him up.”

Her brother … “You’re Jon’s little sister?” At her nod, he laughed heartily. “That explains a lot,” he said, chortling when she shoved him.

Then someone yelled Arya’s name from the yard, and she groaned. “I’m so dead.” Standing with a sigh, she waved. “Time to meet the maker.”

“I’ll see you around,” he replied, though it came out more as a question. She nodded with a small smile before heading inside, and he picked up his groceries and went home with a smile on his face.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Jon had insisted he come to family dinner.

“Come on, we’ve been friends for years, and you have yet to actually sit through a meal with my parents.”

“That’s because your parents are terrifying,” Gendry replied adamantly.

Jon waved his hand. “Dad is all show. He’s a total softie.”

“And your mum?” He raised an eyebrow when Jon gulped.

“Alright. She’s tough. But come on, you know me and Arya, and even Sansa is nice to you.” 

“What about your other brothers?”

“Robb? He’s out of town. The younger ones are at a friend’s. Come _on_. At least do it for Arya. It’ll give her some entertainment. You know how she hates these things.”

Gendry _did_ know, and though he rolled his eyes, he gave in.

So now he was standing nervously on the porch steps, adjusting his shirt and slacks one more time to make sure there was no sign of the garage grease on him. Sighing heavily, he rang the doorbell and waited. Thankfully it was Sansa who answered, giving him a polite smile as always and ushering him inside. 

“Mum sent pie, since she couldn’t make it.” He held up the box in his hand.

“That was sweet of her, tell her thank you. Arya loves her pies,” she grinned, and he couldn’t help his own smile back.

“We know.” 

“You can stick it in the kitchen,” she told him, and he nodded.

Pushing through the swinging door, he stopped dead in his tracks as his mouth fell open. Arya was standing at the counter, her back to him, in grey dress that clung to her figure (when did Arya get a _figure_?), molding to her narrow waist before widening to fall just above her knees. 

“Sansa, could you-“

Arya turned in the midst of her sentence and stopped when she saw Gendry. “Oh. Hey Gendry,” she smiled sheepishly and popped another strawberry in her mouth. 

He swallowed, trying to get some moisture back into his mouth and feeling like a fool. 

“Are you alright?” She questioned, and he shook his head to clear his decidedly un-friendly thoughts.

“Fine, sorry. Just got distracted,” he grinned, wondering if the pink on her cheeks had always been there or if he’d just started noticing it.

He held up the box again. “Mum sent pie for you.”

Her face softened as she took the box from him gently. “How is she?”

“Much better, now, thanks. I think she was just exhausted from traveling so much, it all caught up to her at once.”

Arya nodded. “That used to happen to Dad a lot also, before he finally got promoted.”

Gendry couldn’t help but stare as she pattered around the kitchen in her sensible black flats. Her hair had grown out since she’d hacked it off as a teenager, and now it shimmered down her back in waves, so unlike the ponytail or braid he was used to. As she brushed by him, he vaguely registered the scent of jasmine. He wouldn’t know it so well if his mum didn’t insist on wearing it also. 

“Thanks for coming, by the way.” Arya turned to him apologetically. “I know this isn’t your thing.”

He shrugged. “It’s not yours, either,” he replied.

“Very true.” She grinned mischievously. “So I’m relying on you to keep me entertained for the evening.”

Gendry groaned but let her pull him into the living room all the same.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

If anyone but Arya had invited him to the company banquet, he would have refused. But this was Arya, and she was uncharacteristically nervous and quiet and shy when she’d scuffed her feet and asked him to come, and all he could muster was “When?”

She’d nearly continued on with her clearly prepared speech before realizing he hadn’t argued or said no, and when her face lit up and she hugged him quickly, he was pretty sure he’d go anywhere she asked.

So he found himself in a rented blazer and slacks, standing in front of a mirror and absently debating if he needed a tie. Then the doorbell rang and he heard his mum conversing with Arya outside. Momens later, Arya showed up in the mirror’s reflection, and his jaw went slack. 

Her long chestnut hair was loose again, but that wasn’t what caught his attention. Her face was alive with unbridled excitement, and Gendry found he desperately wanted to know why. Her dark blue dress moved with her as she crossed the room to him.

“Can’t choose?” She grinned, and he looked down, remembering the ties in his hands. 

“Do I need one?” When she nodded, he held them up. “You pick.”

She chose the blue one, tossing the others on his bed. When he fiddled with the tie in embarrassment, she studied him curiously. 

“What is it?”

“Nothing, just …” He rubbed his neck sheepishly. “I don’t know how to tie one. Never had to.” 

Her expression changed into something unidentifiable, and he made to move past her. “I’ll just grab mum quick-“

“No, it’s alright,” Arya stopped him with a soft hand on his chest. “I can do it.”

Gendry looked down at her in surprise as she took the tie from his hand, looping it around his neck. Though she was wearing heels, she was still on tip-toe as he bent nearly double, and she looked around before pushing him back to sit on the armrest of a chair. She stepped closer as her deft hands pulled up his collar and straightened the tie before beginning to knot the fabric in loops. Gendry could only stare at her as she determinedly avoided his eyes, focusing on the tie, and this time he knew he wasn’t imagining the red in her cheeks. As she patted down his collar, a hint of ginger and jasmine on her wrist flooded his senses.

When Arya stepped back, he caught her hand and turned it over, his fingers tracing along her wrist before he pressed his lips to the same spot. He was rewarded by her short gasp, and he pulled her closer. 

Then a cellphone ring cut through the air, startling them both, and Arya answered in somewhat of a daze.

“Hello? Yeah, we’re on our way. Alright. No, I haven’t said anything. Yeah, we’ll be there soon.”

Gendry looked at her in question, but she only curled her fingers around his, tugging him out the door in a hurry. When they arrived, Gendry found out why she’d been in such a rush – and why she was so excited. This was no ordinary banquet. It was a banquet to celebrate a few select employees, and Ned Stark sat among the honored guests. 

Gendry turned to her. “Your father?”

Arya smiled happily, practically glowing. “We weren’t allowed to tell anyone. They wanted it to be a surprise.”

“Is that why you asked me to come?” He inquired.

She nodded, biting her lip. “You’ve been there through all of this stuff. I thought it was only fair that you got to see the outcome.”

He was touched. Uncaring of who saw, he swept her off her feet in a hug, delighted when he felt her arms wrap around his shoulders just as tightly.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The doorbell sounded, and he bounded down the stairs. Opening the door, he simply stared at Arya.

“Hey.” Her smile became nervous when he kept staring. “What?”

“Why are you wearing a dress?”

She flushed. “I’m meeting your mother!” 

“You’ve met her a thousand times before,” he retorted, trying not to grin.

“Yeah, but not …” Arya waved her free hand. “Not like this!”

Gendry was enjoying himself immensely. He leaned against the doorway. “Like what, exactly?”

Arya narrowed her eyes at him. “Not as _your girlfriend_ ,” she hissed, adding “though I may not be for much longer,” and he laughed outright, pulling her into his arms. Though she considered her shyness an annoyance, it was nothing but endearing to him.

“You look lovely,” he whispered, and after a moment, felt her arm snake around his waist. 

“I figured I should look presentable,” she mumbled. “She remembers me as some wild, unruly child.”

“I wasn’t aware that had changed,” he replied, grinning when she punched him. Hearing footsteps from the kitchen, Gendry pulled back but left his arm around her shoulders.

“Look who’s here,” his mum said happily, and Arya went to give her a hug. “You look beautiful, dear. Doesn’t she, Gendry?” 

“She does,” he agreed, grinning widely as Arya turned crimson but flashed her eyes at him all the same.

Once his mother had let go, Arya gestured to the bag in her hand. “I brought dessert, for once.”

Still grinning, Gendry closed the door as his two favorite women sat down at the table.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Gendry forgot how to breathe when she walked down the aisle. 

Jon leaned over from the makeshift altar outside. “Close your mouth, mate,” he whispered with a grin, and Gendry had the urge to stick out his tongue much as Arya always did.

The pale fabric clung to her in all the right places, the thin straps revealing her slim shoulders. Light from the sun made patterns on the dress while the breeze twisted her hair. She was smiling shyly, but her grin turned wicked when her eyes landed on him. Then her gaze drifted to Jon, and she squeezed his arm before falling into the line of bridesmaids opposite them. 

Moments later Ygritte was walking toward them, and Gendry placed a hand at Jon’s back as his friend swayed on his feet. Their smiles were blinding, and Gendry couldn’t have been happier for both of them. The ceremony was quiet and simple, with only immediate family and a handful of friends present. After the bride and groom were announced to cheers and confetti (Arya’s doing, no doubt), he presented his arm for Arya with a grin. Hooking her arm with his, they made their way down the carpet quickly, enveloping Jon and Ygritte in hugs. 

The two had insisted on simply having a dinner instead of all the money that came with planning a reception, so they headed back to the house, where Arya and Sansa had set up a small tent and tables in the back yard.

Long after the plates were empty and everyone was lounging about, Gendry found Arya on the front steps. She was barefoot, having ditched the heels a while back, just as he had dumped the blazer in his car.

“Hey you,” he nudged her gently, and she laid her head on his shoulder.

“Hey.”

“Tired?”

“A little. It was a nice wedding, though,” she murmured, and he nodded in agreement, weaving his fingers with hers. 

“Very little fuss. I’m sure Ygritte was thankful for that.” 

“We all were,” she replied dryly, and he grinned.

His fingers skimmed over the silver band on her third finger, and he was filled with a ridiculous joy once again.

“When do you think they’ll notice?”

“I only took it off the necklace today. So I’d give it ‘til morning,” she replied with a grin. “Besides, they’ll just think it’s an engagement ring. Sansa’s been telling me to wear it for days.”

“She would.”

Arya played with his tie absently. “I’m sorry you can’t wear yours yet,” she whispered, and he kissed away any further apology.

“Doesn’t matter,” he said when he let go. “As long as yours never comes off your finger again.”

This time she drew him down for a sweet kiss that became lingering when neither wanted to let go. “We really need to get you out of this dress,” he said between kisses to her jaw.

“You might be right,” she replied breathlessly. “But we are on the front steps of my parents’ house.” Nevertheless, her hands curled into his shirt.

“You really want to wait until we get home?”

“Gods, no,” she replied, and he laughed against her skin. “I was merely suggesting we put my old room to good use.”

Arya’s grey eyes were filled with mischief when he lifted his head to look at her, and he couldn’t resist giving her one more kiss, sucking gently on her lower lip. Her hands threaded in his hair as he stood up, pulling her with him. Breaking the kiss, Gendry gave no warning before he bent and threw her over his shoulder, eliciting a squeal of laughter from her as he carried her into the house.


End file.
